Market warms as occupiers re-engage the market, still soft conditions persist

The first half of 2021 brought a material increase in occupier re-engagement to the Downtown Chicago office market. Tenants of all sizes were active in the market, seeking quality space combined with the opportunity to take advantage of increasingly tenant favorable conditions. Despite the uptick in activity, overall weakness of market fundamentals will continue in the near-term, particularly amongst older stock buildings. Leasing volume remained well below long-term averages but finally exhibited signals of a comeback, increasing 68.3% by square footage over the same period in 2020.

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